In the Jolly Sailor bar, Vicky lifted up her long, slim glass of Prosecco and chinked it against the other three, which were also raised and waiting for her to make a toast.
‘Miss Lara Cliffe, may this hen do be as jolly as the rest of your life is going to be as Mrs Lara Elmtree. Yamas, as my husband would say.’
‘Yamas,’ said the other three in a bright echo of the Greek ‘cheers’ before sipping at their drinks.
Lara smiled then. She would be very happy with Freddie Elmtree because he was the sweetest man on the planet. He had told her that whatever sort of wedding she wanted, she would have it. All he asked in return was that she pick the hymn ‘Love Divine’, because it was his mum’s favourite and she wouldn’t be there to see her son get married. She’d died long before he had met Lara.
Lara had no plans to be greedy though. She didn’t see the point in spending as much on a wedding gown as some people earned in a year. She found her dream dress in a shop in Leeds after trying on hundreds of them – or at least that’s what it felt like.
Her friends had gone with her to help her choose and offer their styling services. Lara had tried on frilly dresses and plain dresses. Dresses so big they would have filled half the church, fancy dresses that cost a fortune and dresses that made her look like a cake. In the end, they had all decided that the one that looked best was a classy white satin one with a long train. It suited her tall, slim frame. She would wear a sparkly tiara in her long, dark hair and carry her favourite flowers.
The service was to be held in a lovely old church and, afterwards, seventy of their friends and family would go to the charming hotel next door to eat a five-course meal. It was the sort of wedding Lara had always wanted. So why was it that she had the feeling something wasn’t quite right? It was as if she was looking at a finished jigsaw puzzle with no missing pieces, yet the picture did not look as it should do and she couldn’t work out why. She didn’t mention it to her friends. They would have said she had last-minute nerves, wedding jitters, but Lara knew it was more than that.
*
They were on their second glass of Prosecco when Vicky looked out of the window and said, ‘We’re moving.’
‘Oh,’ said Pip glumly, as if mentally waving goodbye to the safe, still dockside.
‘Let’s go and eat,’ Lara suggested. Apart from taking Pip’s mind off being at sea, she was also really hungry.
‘Good idea, I’m starving,’ said Vicky, who was always starving. It was a good job that she enjoyed going to the gym so much, because her life involved a lot of eating. Her husband Adonis’s family was large and merry, and there were a lot of family get-togethers over wonderful home-cooked Greek food.
‘We can go to the buffet and serve ourselves, or there’s the bistro where we will be served by someone else. Which do you fancy?’ asked Lara.
‘Are you really asking us that, Lara?’ Jo replied. ‘We’re going to dine in style tonight. I’m not being crushed in a crowd at a buffet for anyone. Reef Bistro, here we come.’
As they were leaving the bar, they heard a voice from the stage. A woman in tight, ripped jeans, a big-hair black wig and very high heels had just walked on. Behind her was a drummer, settling into his seat, and to her side a guitarist with long, rock-star hair.
‘Hello, everyone. We are Stardust, your entertainment for the evening. Do please join us,’ the woman said.
The guitarist strummed a chord and a cold shiver travelled down Lara’s spine. Danny Belfont always played a chord exactly like that when he first went onstage.
‘Let’s kick off with a little Beatles’ number. You might know it. It’s called, quite simply, “Help”.’
Stardust began to perform. They were a group to be heard in the background, but not really to be listened to. Lara wondered if any of the three musicians on the stage had shared Danny’s dream of playing to packed stadiums. And if they still hoped for a shot at stardom while playing to travellers between Hull and Rotterdam, who wouldn’t even remember their name by breakfast the next morning.
*
In the Reef Bistro, Pip was already starting to realise that having the full three courses was a mistake. It felt good, eating the mushrooms in a cream sauce for a starter. Then the fillet steak for a main course, and cheesecake for dessert, because eating stopped her brain from thinking about how much the ship was swaying. Now, all that food was sitting in her stomach, and she was sure that her body had no plans to do anything with it other than just to let it stay there.
‘You okay, Pip?’ said Vicky.
‘Yep. Totally fine.’ She tried to smile but it was clear that she wasn’t feeling as well as she pretended. Despite the two seasickness tablets she’d taken with her dinner.
The ship was rocking more than they’d expected. Then the waiter had told them to be careful while walking around that evening as high winds were expected.
‘Let’s go back to the bar,’ suggested Jo. ‘We can finish off our drinks in there and listen to the band for a bit.’ She yawned then and chuckled. ‘Assuming I can stay awake long enough to get there.’
The Jolly Sailor bar was very popular that night. Probably because it was in the middle of the ferry and wouldn’t rock as much as places near the ends, such as the Moonlight bar, which was right at the back of the ship. Luckily, as the four of them walked in, a group of six people was getting up to leave and Vicky moved in fast to grab the seats and the table.
Stardust were making their way offstage. The female singer said that they were taking a break, but would be back with more songs shortly. She strutted off with the confidence of someone who saw Beyoncé whenever she looked in the mirror, thought Lara.
As if reading her thoughts, Jo said, ‘Who do you think that singer sees when she looks in the mirror? Taylor Swift? Adele?’
‘Well, you need confidence to stand up on a stage and sing,’ replied Lara, before drinking the last of her red wine.
‘Talent would help as well.’ Jo laughed. ‘I could do a better job, and that says it all.’
‘Don’t you miss it, Lara?’ asked Vicky. ‘Singing?’
‘Not one bit,’ said Lara.
‘You were so good,’ put in Jo.
‘Better than good, you were brilliant,’ added Vicky. ‘Remember that concert we did at school in the fifth form? I mean, we all knew you could sing a bit but – wow – you were amazing. Everyone stood up to clap at the end.’ She started to trill ‘I Don’t Know How to Love Him’ and Jo stuck her fingers in her ears.
‘Stop, you sound like a cat in pain!’
‘Oy, cheeky.’
Pip stood up. ‘I’m sorry to be a party pooper, girls, but I have to go to bed. Do you mind, Lara?’
‘No, of course not,’ she replied. ‘Go sleep. I don’t want you to stay up for the sake of it. Get to bed and be fresh for tomorrow.’
‘I’ll come with you,’ said Jo, draining her glass. ‘I didn’t sleep well last night. I was too excited about this trip. I think the sea air is working its magic on me. See you in the morning, girls. Meet us in Costa at eight. Don’t forget to put your clock forward an hour.’
‘Night, you two,’ said Lara as Pip and Jo walked off together.
‘Remember the days when sleep was the enemy?’ laughed Vicky. ‘I hated going to bed. Sleep was a waste of time. Now my bed is like heaven. In a couple of years, we’ll be putting our teeth in a glass and walking with sticks.’
‘Ah, but in a couple of years we’ll be forty, and life will begin all over again,’ said Lara, wagging her finger.
‘I think that I can stay up long enough to be tempted by a toffee vodka. What do you fancy, Lara?’
‘Ooh, I think I’m tempted to try one as well.’ Lara reached into her bag for her purse before Vicky stopped her.
‘Put that away, lady. Freddie gave me cash to buy all the drinks and food. I’m under strict instructions not to let you pay for a single thing.’
Lara smiled. That was just what her fiancé would do. He was the most caring man she had ever met. She was so lucky to have found him and she really wished she could get rid of whatever was niggling her. Or even work out what it was, so she could deal with it. Nothing should be clouding her happiness. She had everything she had ever wanted. So why was she feeling as if something nasty was about to jump out and give her a shock she wasn’t ready for?
There was movement on the stage. It seemed that Stardust had had their break and were about to start their next set. The drummer came out first. He didn’t look very excited about being there, as if it was a boring job rather than a passion to play drums.
The singer followed. She had a different wig on now, blonde and curly like Dolly Parton’s hair. She’d changed her clothes too and was wearing black leather trousers, black fingerless gloves and a very tight white top buttoned down at the front to show off plenty of boob. She reminded Lara of someone, although she couldn’t think who. She didn’t know anyone who walked around with massive hair and inch-long false eyelashes.
Then the guitarist wandered onto the stage and played that one chord, just as he had earlier. Lara’s eyes snapped away from the singer and to him. She swallowed hard. No, it couldn’t be. She studied him: the lean, tall frame that fitted denim jeans as if they had been invented just for him, the long, rock-star hair that framed his face like a pair of curtains. It was a face that once had the power to make her heart do cartwheels inside her chest wall. It couldn’t be him, her brain was telling her. It was impossible. But it was him. A blast from the past. The guitarist was Danny Belfont.